El Almacén hosted the presentation of the book "Revoltosas, ¿pero ustedes están locas?" last Monday afternoon, a publication edited by the Cabildo de Lanzarote that "delves into the history of this group of friends from San Bartolomé who, in the early 1980s, founded the first female murga in the Canary Islands, revolutionizing Carnival and paving the way for equality"
"This book does them justice because it gives a voice to those pioneers, many of whom are now mothers and grandmothers, who broke the boundaries and brought the values of the young democracy to Carnival," said María Dolores Corujo, recalling how Las Revoltosas "marked a milestone in the history of Carnival."
And, "in times when life was not easy for women" and "when the world of leisure and culture was very masculine," those women "rebelled in the public square, in the most crowded festival," giving "visibility to their problems" and "proposing sisterhood among women to push for changes and social progress," she added.
"It was a feminist, vindictive rebellion that broke down mental barriers and stood up to machismo"
"It was a feminist, vindictive rebellion that broke down mental barriers and stood up to machismo," the president stressed, who "apologized for the absence of Councilor Myriam Barros for personal reasons, conveying her gratitude "for promoting" this project, she clarifies.
As for the content, the book "delves into how the murga was formed, into "how they met almost clandestinely to rehearse, to create their songs and devise their costumes, transgressing what was established," she informs us.
"An incredible story of sorority and female empowerment"
This publishing project was born from the exhibition on Las Revoltosas, curated by Pedro Ayose, which "was exhibited last year at La Casa Amarilla and has been a "very important and exciting" project for Barros, since it collects "an incredible story of sorority and female empowerment," she adds.
In the book there is "an indissoluble balance between the story that is told, built by Mariajo Tabar, with the material collected in multiple meetings held with Las Revoltosas, and the design and photographs of Rubén Acosta, who has created a multicolored wrapper in which to accommodate the story that leads through the origin and evolution of the first female murga in the Canary Islands," the councilor acknowledges.
Also, "the story of "Las Revoltosas" draws a moment of transition, from a society that relegated women to a space of shadow, service and invisibility, to another in which women finally raised their voices," said Mariajo Tabar, author of the texts, who thanked the members of Las Revoltosas for "giving her their time and trusting her to tell her their "intimate issues and anecdotes."
In addition, the publication includes images of the designs of Manuel Camejo that, over time, have originated the fantasies worn by Las Revoltosas; costumes "that show the signs of identity of the island and in which tribute is paid to the Lanzarote landscape and the island way of life," the author confesses.
"A "disguised book" in which Carnival, with its fabrics and glitter, takes on great importance"
"The book also breaks with established publishing standards," being, in the words of Rubén Acosta, "a "disguised book" in which Carnival, with its fabrics and glitter, takes on great importance," he adds. To this end, "a die-cut cover was designed that makes the word "Revoltosas" drawn on different fabrics that belong to discards of original costumes used by Las Revoltosas" and that "have been rescued to dress each of the copies of the run, thus turning each of them into a unique object," the writer maintains.
Finally, the design has been "a totally handmade process that has been carried out by the members of the murga themselves, who have actively participated in the project by personalizing the books," she acknowledges.
